Elections
TON's validator selection process for the next cycle: the elector smart contract collects stake bids and compiles a new validator set.
Aliases: validator elections, ton elections, elector contract
Elections are the on-chain process by which TON picks validators for the next cycle. Unlike Ethereum, where any 32-ETH staker auto-joins the set, TON has a fixed number of validator slots that are auctioned: whoever stakes more wins a seat.
How they work
Elections are run by a system contract called the elector. A cycle looks like:
- Bids. A few hours before the current cycle ends, elector opens a bidding window. Each candidate sends an internal message with their stake (typical minimum is ~340,000 TON) and validator address.
- Ranking. When the window closes, elector sorts bids by stake descending and takes the top N (around 400). Losing bids reclaim their stake.
- Active cycle. Winners become validators for the next cycle (~18 hours). Their stake stays locked through the cycle plus a cooldown period.
- Rewards. At cycle end the elector distributes block rewards and returns stakes.
Notable details
- Minimum stake is set in network config and is updated periodically.
- Slashing. Downtime or double-signing can cost a portion of the stake.
- Nominator pools. Most individual TON holders don’t hold 340,000 TON alone — they delegate through a nominator pool or liquid-staking protocol, and the pool participates in elections as a single stake.
What ordinary users see
Block explorers and analytics dashboards (TON.Live, TonViewer) display the elections schedule: when the bidding window closes, the current minimum stake, and which addresses won seats. For a regular user this is mostly a decentralisation signal — how many distinct validators there are and how concentrated the stake is.